Although food security has begun to improve in areas where fighting has eased, famine has gripped conflict-affected places that have been cut off from aid or under siege, according to the latest food security analysis from the UN-backed CPI.
Famine conditions have been confirmed in El Fasher and Kadugli, Darfur.where “people have endured months without reliable access to food or health care,” the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (fao), the World Food Program (PMA) and child rights agency UNICEF said in a joint release.
Ceasefire call
UN chief António Guterres on Tuesday called for an immediate ceasefire in Sudan as disturbing images of apparent mass killings in El Fasher and elsewhere continue to circulate online.
In a tweetGuterres called on the Sudanese Armed Forces and the rebel paramilitary Rapid Support Forces “to come to the negotiating table to end this nightmare of violence.”
In April 2023, heavy fighting broke out in Sudan between rival armies, creating a massive humanitarian disaster.
Last week the government that controlled El Fasher fell after more than 500 days of siege by the rebels.
Hundreds of civilians – including aid workers – are believed to have been killed and many others trapped behind barricades.
Millions still go hungry
CPI analysis confirmed that approximately 21.2 million people in Sudan (45 percent of the population) face high levels of acute food insecurity, representing a slight improvement.
Besides, An estimated 3.4 million people no longer face critical levels of hunger..
The improvements follow a Gradual stabilization since May in three states. – Khartoum, Al Jazirah and Sennar, where the conflict has eased and families are returning, among other developments.
“But these advances are limited,” the UN agencies said. “The wider crisis has devastated the economy and vital services, and much of the infrastructure that people depend on has been damaged or destroyed.”
‘Fragile improvements’
Favorable conditions for crop growth are also expected after harvest and into next year, and critical hunger levels will improve to 19.3 million through January.
They warned, however, that “These fragile improvements are very localized.“As many families returning to Khartoum and Al Jazirah have lost everything and will find it difficult to benefit from the harvest.
At the same time, active conflict persists in the western regions, particularly in Northern and Southern Darfur, as well as in Western and Southern Kordofan.
Meanwhile, hunger is expected to worsen from February as food reserves run out and fighting continues.
Famine in besieged areas
The IPC Famine Review Committee (FRC) found that famine conditions are occurring in El Fasher, capital of North Darfur state, and Kadugli in South Kordofan, which have been largely isolated due to the conflict.
The UN agencies noted that conditions in Dilling, South Kordofan, “are likely similar to those in Kadugli, but cannot be classified due to insufficient reliable data, as a result of restricted humanitarian access and ongoing hostilities.”
In the western Nuba Mountains, conditions have shown marginal improvement, but famine remains high unless humanitarian access improves.
The FRC projects a risk of famine in 20 additional areas in Greater Darfur and Greater Kordofan, including rural towns, displaced persons camps, and several new locations in East Darfur and South Kordofan.
Furthermore, global acute malnutrition (GAM) rates are alarmingly high, ranging from 38 to 75 percent in El Fasher and reaching almost 30 percent in Kadugli.
This comes as outbreaks of cholera, malaria and measles continue to increase in areas where health, water and sanitation systems have collapsed.
